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From estimated billings to inexplicable charges, Atmos customers are angry

Are you ticked at Atmos Energy? Find out why these customers are.

An Atmos Energy truck on scene where construction crews were digging up natural gas lines along Larga Drive in northwest Dallas on March 2. Atmos Energy is in the process of bleeding the lines so they can replace the piping. (Tom Fox / Staff Photographer)

Even if you don't have a gas leak or you're not one of the families evacuated in northwest Dallas, you might be ticked at Atmos Energy.

The Watchdog has heard from a flow of citizen watchdogs in recent months asking questions about Atmos' procedures and accountability.

These customers say they believe Atmos takes advantage of its monopoly status. The Watchdog also talked to Atmos officials about these claims.

Annual inspections

Did you know that state regulations spell out that all gas lines leading to a meter are the responsibility of Atmos? Did you also know that we, as customers, are responsible for the maintenance of gas lines on our property from the point of the gas meter inward?

Nancy and Jeff Monson first alerted me to this. A gas customer here for 25 years, I didn't know Atmos' responsibility for the piping stops at the meter.

Does anyone call a plumber and say, "Hey, come on over for my annual gas line inspection?"

For the northwest Dallas households that have been evacuated, Atmos says it will have licensed plumbers on site to test each home properly before gas service is restored. There should be no charge.

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For the rest of us, we'd have to pay a plumber.

High bills

Numerous postings on Nextdoor, a website for neighborhoods, complain of high gas bills for homeowners. Of course, we had cold spells the last week of December and the first two weeks of January. But consumers are suspicious.

Art Yum doesn't buy the argument offered in the past by Atmos about higher gas prices.

"Go to the website www.mrci.com," he says, "and click on 'Free Commodity Charts' and then 'Free Monthly Nearby Commodity Charts' and you can pull up current commodity prices going back decades.

"There you can see that natural gas prices are no higher than they were back in the 1990s," he says.

Customer Sandeep Gupta agrees. He says his bills are the highest ever. "Twice what I paid two years ago when gas prices were the same," he says.

Gupta studied Atmos' public earnings reports, contacted officials at Atmos, at his city hall and at the Texas Railroad Commission, which is a state regulator.

"Nobody has been able to provide the precise reason for such a large increase," he says.

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Atmos spokeswoman Jennifer Altieri says, "Colder than normal weather results in an increase in natural gas consumption. We want to remind customers that we never mark up the cost of natural gas. Our customers pay what we pay."

Christi Stembridge, a second Atmos spokeswoman, tells me, "Keep in mind the cost of gas changes every month and your rates have increased each year as rate cases are approved. So it is difficult to just compare amounts on the bill as it is not apples to apples."

Estimated bills

More customers complain about getting high bills who don't realize they received an estimated bill. Any difference should be made up on a future bill.

Atmos says it will issue an immediate refund of overcharges if asked, but I've heard from folks who say they could only get a credit on a future bill.

Why are there more estimated bills than in the past?

Most likely, because Atmos must comply with state rules requiring pipeline upgrades. Atmos has shifted its workforce from meter reading to pipe replacement.

Atmos officials say that under Texas rules, estimated bills may be sent as long as there is at least one actual reading every six months.

How do you know if you get an actual bill or an estimated one?

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Your bill will either state "Estimated Usage in CCF" or "Actual Usage in CCF."

Atmos says its estimates are close to actual gas usage. No way, says customer Sidney S. Louis. He tells The Watchdog he was forced to overpay by about $200. When he calls customer service, he says the employees follow a script and he can't get answers.

"How many others are being ripped off for $100 here or $100 there?" he asks. "That could add up to quite a sum."

That shows the suspicion some have for the gas monopoly. But Atmos officials promise that nobody is supposed to pay for gas they didn't use.

Bottom line: Does your house have steel or (safer) plastic gas piping? How old is it? When was the last time, if ever, a plumber checked it? And have you talked to your kids about what to do if they smell gas?

Staff writer Marina Trahan Martinez contributed to this report.

Atmos facts to know

If you smell gas, leave the property immediately. Call 911 and Atmos at 1-866-322-8667. Don't touch anything like a light switch, which could ignite an explosion.

Tired of estimated bills? Consider going on a monthly budget plan in which you pay a more predictable amount each month based on a rolling 12-month average. This spreads payments more evenly throughout the year.

Customers in extreme financial need, including the elderly and disabled, should call 211 to see if they qualify for assistance. 2-1-1 Texas is a program that helps Texans in need connect with services that can help them.

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Reading your bill

Confused by your bill? Join the club. Here's how Atmos explains its charges.

Customer charge is a set amount each month that covers a portion of the gas company's fixed costs that it incurs to serve each customer.

Rider WNA is weather normalization amount, a seasonal adjustment that corrects for colder or warmer than normal weather.

Consumption charge covers a portion of the fixed costs and the company's variable cost incurred to serve customers, and is multiplied times your usage.

Rider GCR covers the actual gas cost paid to suppliers and the transportation charges paid to deliver gas to the company's distribution system. No profit is added. The amount is multiplied times your usage.

Rider FF is a franchise fee imposed by cities for the company's use of streets, alleys and other public rights of way.

Rider tax is the state occupation tax, a gross receipts tax imposed by the state based on a city's gross receipts and population.

City sales tax: Bills may include city, state and other sales taxes.

Source: Atmos Energy

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Timeline leading to evacuation

Feb. 21: A fire thought to be fueled by natural gas breaks out in a home in the 3500 block of Durango Drive. One person is treated at a hospital for injuries.

Feb. 22: A kitchen fire is reported in the same block. A man was cooking on the stove when he was burned by a flare-up that spread.

Feb. 24: The National Transportation Safety Board announces it is sending a team to investigate the "explosion of single-family residences."

Feb. 25: Atmos crews discover a gas leak at the Chapel Creek Apartments in the 3400 block of Hidalgo Drive. Residents in 90 units are evacuated. An NTSB official says investigations typically take six months to a year.

Feb. 26: The Railroad Commission of Texas, which oversees pipeline operators, says it has sent two inspectors to work with local and federal investigators. The NTSB says it is focusing on the Espanola Drive explosion but also investigating the two preceding house fires on Durango Drive.

Feb. 27: About 300 homes have been evacuated since the fatal explosion, including two apartment complexes, Atmos announces. Two-thirds of the 2.5 miles of lines targeted have been replaced. A gas leak forces the evacuation of a northwest Dallas fire station.

Feb. 28: Another round of evacuations is ordered. Atmos says 390 homes and 90 apartment units have been evacuated.

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March 1: Atmos announces about 2,800 homes near the site of the deadly explosion will be without gas service for as long as three weeks. More than 120 crews will be involved in around-the-clock repair and replacement work, the company says.

Dave Lieber, The Watchdog investigative columnist. Dave has written a hard-hitting newspaper column in Dallas/Fort Worth since 1993. His work appears twice a week. His goal is to save readers time, money and aggravation. In 2019, Dave won top prize in America's largest column-writing contest. The contest judge called his winning entries “models of suspenseful storytelling and public service."